my wife wants to lose weight and start eating healthy and exercising a little. she is 24 years old. 5' 3" & 190 lbs. my question is how many calories per day should she take in? thanks for the help.

Gonna need her Bodyfat level to be able to give you an idea how many calories she will need to lose BF. A good idea at this point would be to introduce a "CLEAN" diet if she hasn't already done so.

does she exercise, will she lift weights? Does she have a strenuous job or a desk job, is she willing to do cardio too.

sorry, dont know her body fat% she dosen't want to lift weights. her back was injured in a car wreck a few years ago and just recently the doctors she has been seeing are suspecting she may have fibro myalgia. she loves to swim and is ok with the stationary bikes for cardio. she works 3rd shift as a pharmacy tech. not much physical stress at work other than being on her feet for 12 hours per night. she isnt looking to be a swim suit modle or anything. her goal right now is to get down to 140lb and see how she looks and feels about herself then. thanks for any and all help. i can tell she is depressed about her weight and i want to help her but i know more about gaining weight and building muscle than i do about weight loss.

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she loves to swim and is ok with the stationary bikes for cardio.

Well, there are all kinds of water work she can do other than swimming to keep from being bored. Add the fins for a more efficient let workout. As with any case, start off slow and work and most of all, encourage.

The next thing is to skip the thought of weight loss and call it FAT LOSS.

Chunky will formulate a great diet. Here's a few more questions. Does she really have fibromyalgia or she "May" have it? If so, does she have a diet in place?

Aspartame and MSG should be out and there may be some foods that flare it up. Keep a close eye on that.

ZMA should assist a little on the sleep, especially if she has an associated problem with restless leg syndrome.

Your most important goal is support. She's already convinced to do something.